Topic: Predict The Metacritic Scores (Launch Window)

@Maxz Snipperclips,I'm sorry.It was a typo I promise.Not even a next key along typo,but 2 keys.It was supposed to read 88.You're a day one for me you utterly charming game you.

@CrazedCavalier
Yea, I'm also thinking all this early hype may not exactly translate into great scores. I still think a lot of the big venues are gonna find any and all reasons to deduct points.

I didn't even think about that but now I could definitely see that happening :/

To be fair the same has been true for every Zelda release. Some of them with fairly obvious things for reviewers to complain about like motion controls or fairly derivative world building. Even Wind Waker with its, at the time, fairly bold art direction. But if you look at metacritic scores for 3D Zelda games....

Ocarina of Time - 99%
Majora's Mask - 95%
Wind Waker - 96%
Twilight Princess - 95%
Skyward Sword - 93%

The outliers there are Ocarina of Time and Skyward Sword. They're exceptions for one reason or another on either side of this scale. I don't think BotW will be torn apart like Skyward Sword was by some. I wouldn't be surprised however if people do treat it like they treat Ocarina of Time to some degree. Because it is clearly changing the formula. So I'm guessing 96% but really wouldn't be surprised if it gets 97% or so when the dust settles. Above that and you're in a very, very small category of games.....

Less than Skyward Sword? Hey, 90% isn't a bad score. But I'd be pretty surprised if that's where it ends up.

@OorWullie The last person that's after some clicks is probably Jim Sterling. He's entirely Patreon funded by the way, so it doesn't even make a difference to him. I think his reviews are always pretty reasonable. I've yet to see a click-baity review.

@Octane Fair enough, I am not really familiar with him,I just remember one of his reviews standing out at the bottom on Metacritic.

Thinking back it was the Starfox Zero review, he gave it a really low score which is fair enough I suppose {although I enjoyed it) but I recall the review coming off as an angry rant and didn't seem very professional. Haven't bothered checking him out since then . I will in future though.

That God is a Geek though I've spotted 2 or 3 times rating good games far lower than anyone else. There was one that really stood out but i don't recall what game it was. It wasn't a divisive game like SFZ. The review was just 2 short and badly written paragraphs with a 2 or 3 out of 10 score at the end. It was a game everyone else rated good to excellent.

Jim Sterling puts his views on corporate politics ahead of the actual content in question. He hates Nintendo because they are super conservative and that rubs him the wrong way. Most other reviewers can separate that out, he can't. He's a political activist more than he is a game journalist.

Also Star Fox Zero wasn't particularly great so I can only assume it became an even better platform for his views on Nintendo.

I have to agree with the notion that Jim Sterling shouldn't be taken seriously when it comes to his views on Nintendo. He is just a jerk, imo. Just take his Super Mario Run review, which might have gotten a deserved score (5/10), I personally disagree, but that's okay. But the way he writes the review make him seem biased. Even though we can deduce that he starts writing the review after having played the game, starting off with "I am gonna hate writing this" make him seem biased and rude. His opinions about piracy are also ridiculous and irrational. I can appreciate that someone doesn't enjoy Nintendo games, but his way of ripping on Nintendo just makes him worthless as a reviewer of their content.

I think people are underestimating 1 2 Switch. Granted, it seems to be a shallow mini-game compilation but I'm betting reviewers will have a blast with it. They'll probably summarise it as being small in content but large in fun - a game best played in short bursts with family/friends, and one to demonstrate the capabilities of the Joy-Con (not dissimilar to Wii Sports and the Remotes). If it's taken for what it is - a party game hinting at the potential of the console - then it should score well.

Wii Sports has a score of 76 on Metacritic. 1 2 Switch looks to be more fun and uses the HD rumble; I'd be surprised if it scored lower than 70. I expect most low-score reviews will criticise the price and complain it's not a pack-in title (which I think is a little unfair).

@skywake Jim Sterling is a joke of a games journalist, more so than most game bloggers a la Kotaku and Destructoid. His Nintendo reviews are like certain reviews for American Sniper (stop reviewing Bush-era foreign policy and start reviewing the actual movie).
His bias is obvious-- the PS4 launched over 3 years ago and still hasn't gotten full access to Playstation Classics, while he's willing to go on and on about Nintendo's VC and stance on piracy.

@Octane "The last person after some clicks is Jim Sterling"
"Why Nintendo is a distributor and absolutely toymaker"
"The Jimquisition: Why It’s Morally Okay To Pirate All Of Nintendo’s Games"
I rest my case.

@CrazedCavalier I don't necessarily think he is after clicks. He might just be a jerk. I fully agree though, his opinions are appalling. Nobody should be condoning piracy. It is a huge issue, and it mostly affect the smaller companies and cost people opportunities and livelihood.

@AlliMeadow Regardimg Jim, as I have said, being an indie on Switch exclusively, having all Nintendo produce pirated affects my IP, by someone using influence to pick and choose the law to support protecting their IP, damned if it affects anyone elses that doesnt matter.

Thats what he thinks Nintendo does, and what therefore, he is fine doing to me as a consequence. So if we use his argument, Im free to unleash hell should that day hopefully never come.

But OT for a moment.

Zelda - 80
Snipperclips - 70
FAST RMX - 70

And so on so forth. I expect Horizon will skew Zelda, and this is the modern internet. Life wont be as kind as it was to Ocarina of Time.

Which is why expecting failure is preperation for actual good news.

He's always struck me as something of a shock jockey - though not having a huge amount of experience with shock jocks (or indeed, Sterling), perhaps I shouldn't judge.

Whether it nets him extra clicks or not, Sterling being Sterling is part of his brand. It's what his fans expect. There's a sort of postured heroicism is 'calling things out' at every opportunity, and 'saying it like it is' (or how you think it is, or how you'd like to be seen to think it is).

Anyway, not long until we find out.

@AlliMeadow Except he doesn't condone piracy. He just spends 90% of the video making you think he does before rehashing the "Nintendo takes ad revenue" message and saying he doesn't actually support piracy but Nintendo has a double standard. He just went with the title and theme for the outrage and so he and his fans could mock people on social media and forums for thinking he actually does support it.
Jim Sterling is the epitomization of everything wrong with the hyper-cynical side of gaming culture. Smarmy, know-it-all, unapologetic-- even though he makes some good points, the way he makes them and his general persona makes you want to have nothing to do with him.

@BLP_Software Skyward Sword, the most criticized main console entry to date, got away with a 92. Previews have been universally and overwhelmingly positive; it's going to get mostly 9s with a few perfect scores. There's no way it's getting less than 85.

Everyone is after clicks. Being Patreon funded doesn't make you "secure." You still need clicks to get people to notice you to get them to fund you through Patreon. I worked in the online world. It's insane and stressful and I wouldn't recommend it for anyone, to be honest. It's just not healthy.

You could be the nicest person in the world, but the need to get noticed and make money through blogging/YouTube/Twitch through clicks and word of mouth trumps everything. And if that means giving BotW, for instance, a 5/10 with zero good reasons when everyone else is giving it 9s and 10s, then so be it. It will get you clicks, guaranteed.

Can't see Jim giving Zelda less than a 9, I know he hates Nintendo but he's always given their good games decent scores. Robobot got a 9/10 iirc, and Sun and Moon got an 8.5 or something. Only time will tell though!

As for the original topic, I think Zelda will get around a 94 or 95. Games don't seem to easily score 95+ as often as they used to, and many struggle to remain in the low 90's.

BotW will get min 97. You heard it here first

@CrazedCavalier I know it wont get less than 85. I like being pleased though. So i tell myself to prepare for the worst so Im not too down on it, or Im ecstatic.

Breath of the Wild: 95
1, 2 Switch: ~65
Snipperclips: 75

I did watch about half of that video because of the sensationalist title. I guess that's why they do this sort of thing, it works. But it just took way too long for him to get to his actual point. When he did finally get to it? It wasn't a particularly strong point to make.

Especially given the counter-productiveness of what he was advocating. If your issue with Nintendo is that they are super protective of their content? If your issue is that they don't really hold internet personalities in a very high regard? Getting up on your soapbox and telling your viewers to pirate their content isn't going to help. More likely they're going to tighten their grip.

/2c